The lungs whisper to the brain: scientists find why a lung-vessel disease also clouds memory

Many people with pulmonary hypertension — dangerously high pressure in the lungs' blood vessels — quietly report something doctors rarely ask about: their thinking has slowed. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC have now found the biology behind it. Using brain scans and blood tests, Stephen Chan's team found a consistent loss of brain tissue and weakened communication between the cerebellum and the frontal lobe — the regions for memory, attention and planning — driven by the same inflammation that damages the lungs, with a genetic variant called NCOA7, present in about a quarter of patients, linked to inflammation in both organs. No guideline currently includes cognitive screening for these patients, and no test exists to flag who is at risk; this study points to the first candidate marker — and to inflammation itself as a target for protecting the brain.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: tech innovation